


Just Like One of the Guys

by okii_dokii_dokii



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: A little bit of angst, Female Reader, Gen, I can make a male one if anyone wants it though, Not a Love Story, it gets better though, just an adventure story
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-16
Updated: 2017-05-11
Packaged: 2018-08-15 08:42:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 10,368
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8049736
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/okii_dokii_dokii/pseuds/okii_dokii_dokii
Summary: Join Noctis and crew on their journey for the truth. Take on the role of comrade and experience the camaraderie that FFXV's main group has to offer!





	1. Road Trip

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for clicking on my story! Hope you like it. So far I'm really only going off of what I've played in the demo and what I've seen in trailers, so hopefully it's as in-character as it can get! Feedback is appreciated but not at all required.

“Are we there yet?”

“Prompto I swear to Etro. If you ask if we are ‘there yet’ I will personally-”

“Jeez, can you be any louder?”

“Everyone shut up! You’ll wake Noctis!”

A few grumbles were heard, but the car did indeed go silent. All of the commotion hadn’t even caused a stir in the prince’s sleep. It wasn’t likely he’d wake up, but one couldn’t be too careful. Last time it was too loud and it woke him, Noctis was grumpy for the entire rest of the ride. It wasn’t a close destination either. It’s not something any of them would want to repeat.

The gentle rumbling of the car on the road was like a lullaby for the prince and one of his companions. (Y/N) was already drowsy enough with the almost constant battling they had done and the last thing (Y/N) needed was another grumpy prince situation. Letting her head hit the headrest behind her, she put a hand on Prompto’s shoulder.

“By the way. We’re almost there, to answer your question.” (Y/N) whispered quietly. Prompto’s energy immediately spiked. Luckily, Gladiolus knew it was coming and slapped a heavy hand on his shoulder when he tried to shoot out of his seat. Ignis glanced back at them, then returned his attention to the road shaking his head.

(Y/N) glanced at her phone, seeing they were only about 20 minutes from their destination. _I can let myself have a short nap. It’s not like much will happen_. She thought.

Well, news flash. She was wrong. Very, very wrong.

~~~~~~~~

A sharp turn of the car woke her up. (Y/N) felt a warm hand on her face and opened her eyes to see who it was. Gladio had probably seen the turn coming and stopped her head from hitting the side of the car.

“Naptime’s over. We’ve got company.” Gladio said, already a little bit irritated. (Y/N) groaned.

“How do they keep finding us?!” she cried, exasperated. Gladio shrugged in response, heaving himself to his feet and over the car body with sword already in hand. Glancing around, she realized Magiteks had begun marching towards them from both sides. Sighing, she got out of the car and stretched.

“Ignis, instructions?” She asked. Without taking his attention away from the oncoming enemies, he answered.

“You and His Highness take the left. Gladiolus, Prompto and I shall take the right.”

“Yessir!” (Y/N) said. Inwardly she was glad she didn’t have to go with Ignis, he was always worrying too much about her and it got annoying after awhile. (Y/N) started off slowly towards the mechanical soldiers, Noctis a few feet ahead of her and ready to fight.

“Ne, Ouji-san! Be careful, alright? If you get even a scratch Iggy’ll have my head.” (Y/N) called out teasingly. She could practically hear the eye roll she got in response. He waved a hand at her over his shoulder and took off running. Taking a deep breath and summoning her weapon, (Y/N) charged into the fight on the heels of her prince.

The blue sparkles danced in the air around her as the bow materialized in her hands. An arrow already notched, she let it fly. It was a perfect hit, taking out three that were marching in a row. Telltale laser sights reflected on her eye, prompting her to get in front of Noctis as fast as possible. Throwing an arm out, she pushed him to the side as bullets whizzed by where he had been standing a moment ago. He nodded at her in quick thanks and warped off, striking one of them instantly.

Taking a glance over her shoulder at the other three, (Y/N) noted that Prompto was rapidly coming their direction. Frowning slightly, (Y/N) offed several more soldiers and turned to Noctis.

“Prompto’s sprinting over here, looks like something's wrong!” She shouted at Noctis while blocking a swing from a Turning around, he spotted his friend running towards them and warped to meet him. (Y/N) sighed as she watched him go.  _Of course he left me here. What else was I expecting._

Throwing her bow into the air, she summoned her sword instead and raced forward to take out the few that Noctis had left standing. Thankfully there were no more gunmen, so that was one less thing she had to worry about. It didn’t take long to finish off the metal men. With as much tech as Nilfheim has, one would think they would make their soldiers better fighters.

Slashing through the chest of the last one, (Y/N) turned around and let her sword shatter and disappear. She didn’t hear anymore fighting from where the others were, so she decided not to worry too much. Jogging briskly back to the car, she wasn’t too surprised to find no one there.

“Guys?! Where ya at?” She called out. No response. Frowning, she continued jogging in the direction Prompto and Noctis had gone. A sudden, loud cry made her crouch down immediately. Adrenaline pumping, she stealthily approached a small hill and peeked over the top. What she saw wasn’t encouraging.

The group of Magiteks had surrounded all four of the boys and penned them into a corner, nothing but sheer rock faces behind them and spears and swords in front. Noctis and the others all looked injured and not in any state to fight back. (Y/N) shook her head.  _How do these boys always manage to get into trouble…?_

Taking a deep breath, she readied as many arrows as she could notch at once. One for every soldier there. She’d only done this once before and had almost taken Prompto out in the process. Hoping dearly that this worked, she stood up.

“DUCK!!” She yelled, and let the arrows fly in a blinding flash of light. Several instances of creaking and popping metal were heard. Sparks flew for only a moment, and then nothing. She opened her eyes, looking around. She hadn’t even noticed she had closed them. The rest of her group were on the ground, Ignis almost on top of Noctis, Gladio on top of him and Prompto behind all of them.

Uncurling from his little ball of fear, Prompto realized (Y/N) had come to rescue them and came running over almost taking her to the ground.

“DUUuuUUDE!!! That was so cool!” He nearly shouted in her ear. Chuckling nervously, she pat his head gently and returned his hug.

“Hehe, thanks Prompto...all part of the job, right?” She said, shrugging. Ignis made his way over, Noctis being heavily supported by him and Gladiolus. (Y/N) noticed them and cringed a little bit.

“Goodness….Noct, you alright?” She took a good look at him. He was bruised all over and it looked like he was bleeding from his leg. It took some effort, but Noctis raised his head to look at her.

“Y...yeah. Just...a bruise or two,” he replied. Ignis let out a rough breath, maybe amusement.

“And a bullet through the leg. And don’t forget the sprained wrist and minor concussion.” Nope, definitely not amusement. Noctis’ head bobbed a little, his eyes wanting to close. Ignis noticed the sudden slump in his charges body, and looked to Gladio.

“A hand getting his Highness to the car, Gladio?” He asked (more like ordered). Gladio nodded, and instead of helping Ignis carry him he just picked Noctis up bridal style and started on the way back to the car, leaving Ignis standing there like an idiot. Clearing his throat and adjusting his glasses, Ignis followed.

 


	2. Chapter 2

Prompto and (Y/N) were the last two to the car. They were both surprised to see Noctis on top of Ignis ‘prized’ jacket in the backseat. They all piled in the car and headed away from the piles of mechanical body parts. They needed somewhere to camp and lay low until Noctis healed up.

The car was mostly silent, save for the occasional snore or grunt from the sleeping prince. (Y/N)  couldn’t keep her curiosity in check any longer.

 

“So...does anyone wanna fill me in on what happened back there?” She asked. Gladio acted like he hadn’t heard her, it wasn’t his place to tell and neither did he want to. Prompto made a show of looking at the passing scenery (even though it was pretty much just barren desert??) and that just left Ignis. He took a deep breath, his hands gripping the steering wheel for a moment.

 

“Well. The battle was going well, as per usual. Though…..there was this one….I’m not sure it was even Magitek, but it was fighting against us. It was like nothing any of us have encountered before…” he trailed off, and the tension in the car was nearly visible.

 

She waited patiently for Ignis to finish. Everyone seemed really hesitant to tell her what had happened. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Prompto curl up into a tighter ball. She heard her heart beat loudly in her ears. The clues all clicked together.

 

_Noctis’ bullet wound._

 

_A new enemy._

 

_Prompto’s reluctance._

 

“Wait….don't tell me….Mind control?!” (Y/N) exclaimed. Ignis nodded reluctantly. He jerked a thumb in Prompto’s direction.

 

“And he's the one that got...taken over-”

 

“Hence Noct’s bullet wound, right? I didn't think there were any mech gunners on your side.” (Y/N) interrupted him, not wanting to make them dwell on this longer than necessary.

 

Sitting back into her seat, (Y/N) let out a heavy sigh.

 

“Let's just focus on finding a place to stop and heal up first. Then we can discuss this more.” It was more of a statement than a suggestion. No one objected and so once again, the Regalia was silent.

 

~~~~~~

 

Once they had reached the nearest camping spot, they all piled out of their seats, stretching and some groaning.

 

“Alright guys, let’s set up camp. I’m starving!!” Prompto was strangely enthusiastic considering what had just happened. It was so overdone that it really seemed fake. No one said anything about it though. Ignis popped the trunk of the Regalia and everyone started on their tasks to set up camp for the night.

 

Even though no one was talking much to each other unless they had to, it wasn’t nearly as tense as it had been on the ride here. Maybe the physical labor was a good outlet. It sure seemed like Gladiolus had hammered the spikes in maybe a little  _too_  hard…

 

Dinner was a simple stew of vegetables and meat, and as they all gathered around the table, the tension of the day seemed to flow out of them, allowing some conversation to bounce around the table, and even a joke or two. As much as she didn’t want to disturb this temporary peace by bringing up the incident from earlier, (Y/N)’s mind couldn’t get off the subject.

 

Gently setting down her now empty bowl, she took a deep breath.

 

“So...is now an appropriate time to ask about earlier?” She said quietly. (Y/N) regretted saying anything as soon as the words left her mouth. Everyone else froze, even Prompto (even though his face was halfway in his bowl).

Looks were thrown around the table to see who would be the one to tell the story. Eventually it landed on Ignis to share the story. Adjusting his glasses, he began telling the tale.

 

“As you know, we were ambushed by a fleet of Magiteks. Not long after you and His Highness split up, this…..alien-like creature… It didn’t even pay attention to its allies. It didn’t hesitate to cut them down. It exuded what one might call a miasma; used to make one feel...numb.”

 

“Iggy looked even more emotionless than usual.” Gladio commented. In any other context it might have been a teasing gesture, but all it did was make everyone more on edge. If it had affected even Ignis, then it had to be seriously powerful. Ignis glanced at him briefly before continuing.

 

“It was difficult to focus, as if-”

 

“As if someone had sapped all the positivity from you. Like a black hole of just….misery and  _hate_.” Prompto butt in quietly. He stared at the table, not making eye contact with anyone.

 

“It was like I wasn’t even in control anymore. One second we were smashin’ em to bits, y’know? And the next thing I know, Gladio has me on the ground in a headlock.” Prompto buried his face in his hands. His body shuddered with silent despairing gasps.

“I didn’t know what I was doing, I-I swear I’d never do that-” His voice got higher, cracking with unshed tears.

 

“Promp- Prompto! We know, you wouldn’t ever attack Noct willingly, alright? Take a deep breath,” (Y/N) saw he was about to slip into a sobbing fit and tried to calm him down but to no avail. No matter what she said, Prompto’s shaking only got worse. Ignis only stared straight ahead, the campfire glinting off his glasses creepily. Gladio only looked on, not offering any help. Noctis looked halfway between passing out and very uncomfortable.

 

(Y/N) looked around the table at them. She was baffled as to why none of them were even attempting to help calm their friend. Getting up abruptly from her seat, she quickly stood Prompto up and pulled him into her arms, stroking his back gently and doing her best to stop his sobbing and thrashing.

 

“Prompto, it wasn’t your fault, really it wasn’t. That wasn’t you, you didn’t do it. It was them, please, please stop Prompto...Prompto please, you’re worrying me…!” (Y/N) was babbling, his distress pulling her into her own little spiral of fear.

 

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, ‘m sorry,msorryimsorry-y-” Suddenly, without warning Prompto broke out of (Y/N)’ arms and sprinted off into the dark woods. (Y/N) tried to catch his wrist but he was already gone by the time she had processed he was gone. She shouted after him to wait, and started running without hesitation. Tears blurred her vision as she ran into the edge of the dense forest. She could hear his footsteps, but couldn’t see him anymore. (Y/N) knew she wouldn’t be able to catch up to him. Jaw clenched in anger and sadness, she stalked back to the camp.

 

In the few minutes it had taken her to come back, Ignis had cleaned up the dinner table and the campsite was empty. A light was on in the boys tent (of course she had her own smaller one, what kind of person did you think she was?) and she could see the silhouettes of who she suspected to be Ignis and Gladiolus sitting up. Angrily she stomped over to the tent and ripped the flap open.

 

“What the hell you guys?! Prompto was seriously stressed out. He was  _crying_  and yet all you three did was sit there! I thought we were a group, didn’t we all  _promise_ to keep each other safe. You guys just threw all that out the window. I mean, could you not see the tears on his face, how badly shaken he was?! We. Don’t. Know. Where. He. Is!” (Y/N) ranted, fists clenched at her sides and voice shaking.

 

Once again, all they did was stare into the corner of the tent. Picking up the nearest object to her, she hurled it at them. Gladiolus caught the pillow effortlessly before it could hit the sleeping prince and set it down with a deep breath.

 

“Look, I’m not happy about this either. But there’s a good reason we didn’t do anything, alright?” He said gruffly.

“Oh?” (Y/N) said incredulously. “And what reason could be  _soooo_  important that you would be willing to ignore Prompto and let him run off into the woods at  _night_?!”

 

Ignis finally looked like he was about to give her some answers when a loud roar cut him off. (Y/N) glared once at the two brunettes.

 

“I had better get a really good reason for this.” She said and dashed out of the tent in the direction of the roar.

 

 


	3. Chapter 3

(Y/N) followed the loud footsteps and roars into the forest. The bushes and low hanging tree branches in her way were shoved out of her way as she sprinted. A loud splintering caught her attention. She could see the top of a tree start to tilt as it started to fall over, all of the birds in it flying out of it at once. She heard a quiet scream to her right, and immediately changed directions and headed that way. Her calves were burning and she was quickly running out of breath, but there was no way she’d stop. Obviously Prompto had gotten himself into some kind of danger and, unlike his other so-called teammates, she was going to help him no matter what.

(Y/N) ran straight into an open clearing, but heard nothing, not even a rustle of a leaf. She didn’t like it, not one bit. Whatever had been making that noise had to be huge; there was no way it could hide.

...Right?

Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she summoned her sword and gripped it tightly. If everything was quiet like this then-

Out of nowhere, a huge vine swept through the trees and into the clearing over her head. She ducked immediately, now running towards where the thick vine had retreated. Whatever it belonged to was sure to have Prompto; it seemed to be the only thing in this swampy wood anyway.

She came to another clearing after only a moment. Only, this clearing was much….soggier than the last. She could feel herself already sinking into the mud.

“Prompto!! Where are you?!” She yelled out. Another roar from the creature stopped her from hearing any reply. She saw movement from the corner of her eye and turned towards it. A huge cloud of nearly opaque green gas was rolling across the clearing, rapidly approaching her. She paled as she realized she had no real way to escape.

Shuffling from inside the cloud snapped her out of her trance. Her sword in hand, she waited for anymore indications of life. The green cloud was almost at her feet when she began to make out a humanoid figure inside it. Sword in hand, she readied to fight whatever it was that was making the smoke. She heard a low groan from inside the smog.

“Show yourself, whoever you are!” She yelled. She hoped it was Prompto….she hadn’t heard anything, distressed or otherwise, for a good while now. The figure slowly came into view, and indeed it was Prompto. He looked like he’d taken quite the beating. His hair was covered in mud and dirt, his clothes were dripping swamp water and he had cuts all over his arms and face. Dismissing her weapon immediately, she ran up to drag him out of the mist. Just from being in it for that one second left her eyes burning and a strong urge to cough her lungs up.

“Prompto, come on. We gotta get out of he-” (Y/N) spoke softly, trying not to startle him from the daze he seemed to be in. Sighing shortly when he didn’t respond, she started dragging him by the hand away from the clearing and (hopefully) in the direction of camp. Though he was able to walk, it was more of a shamble than anything. He tripped over every little branch and pebble they encountered. (Y/N) was all but carrying him through the forest.

To add insult to injury, the sun had almost disappeared behind the horizon, making it even harder to tell where they were going and see any obstacles in their path. She continued to talk to him, but to no avail. Nothing she did made him even blink.

“Prompto, come on! You have to walk for yourself at some point...I can’t carry you all the way back!” (Y/N) cried. Her arm had long since past the point of numbness, but it wasn’t like she could just drop him…

...Right?

 _Well…_ She thought. _If I drop him, then maybe he’ll snap out of whatever he’s in._

So she did. Prompto hit the ground with a muffled thump, thankfully not face down. (Y/N) watched as his mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water, but no sound came out. A nearly invisible black aura dissipated as soon as he hit the groung. Confused, she leaned down to him. Upon closer inspection, she realized that his eyes looked like they were under a heavy fog, his normally bright blue iris’ now an almost white. She waved her hand in front of his face, but it had no effect. Prompto still continued to flail about, arms feeling around him desperately.

“Prompto!! Calm down, it’s just me! It’s me, (Y/N)!” She said calmly. It didn’t do much of anything as he kept flailing. Getting an idea, (Y/N) wrapped her hands around one of his that were in the air. He froze then, not moving except for his chest heaving from all of the struggling he was doing. She felt a gentle squeeze from Prompto, and she squeezed back. Even though his eyes were cloudy and unfocused, she could tell that she had Prompto’s full attention. Quietly, she sat down next to him and laid his hand on her lap. His palm up, she started tracing letters on his opened hand.

I-T-S-(Y/N)-A-R-E-Y-O-U-O-K-A-Y She spelled out.

A slow nod moved Prompto’s blond spikes back and forth. Letting out a relieved breath she didn’t know she was holding, she tried to think of another message. She was interrupted by Prompto returning a message on her own palm.

C-A-N-T-S-E-E-H-E-A-R-S-P-E-A-K

  
His hand was shaky as he traced the letters. (Y/N) sucked in a breath. She didn’t think it was that bad…. _I’ve got to get him back to camp, ASAP. There’s no way I could defend him if anything attacks._ She thought, then passed it on to her friend on the ground and he agreed. It was nothing short of a circus to get him standing again, but they managed and so, under (Y/N)’ lead, they headed back in the direction of camp.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Geez, sorry for the long wait everyone, school is kicking my butt right now, but here's hoping to more frequent updates!! Hope you like it :3

It was nearly sunrise by the time the two made it back to the camp. Prompto was still unable to see or hear or speak, and an awkward silence followed them the whole way. (Y/N) had pretty much carried him the entire way back. Thankfully, they didn’t run into anything that wanted a fight. She sat Prompto on an open bench, tracing a message on his hand that she would be right back. She was about ready to slap some sense into Ignis, Gladio and Noctis, but a hand holding her wrist stopped her. She saw tears in Prompto’s cloudy eyes, and his mouth was pulled into a frown. Sighing, she knew what he was wanting her to not leave him alone.

 

As much as she wanted to oblige his request, she knew that she’d be right back and it would be a much quicker to just bring the rest of them out of their tent. Soft snores told her that they were all still asleep.

 

“Great to know they didn’t lose any sleep over their friend running off into the woods…” (Y/N) grumbled to herself. She gently pat Prompto’s arm, tracing into his hand that she would be right back and to stay here. He nodded, withdrawing his arm and curling up into a sad little ball on the bench. (Y/N) sighed. This situation had only gotten worse since that Magitek attack. It seemed like so long ago already, even though it hadn’t even yet been a day.

 

She could feel herself almost steaming with anger at this point. (Y/N) kicked the side of the tent roughly.

 

“Oi, Ignis, Gladio, Noct. Wake up, I’ve brought Prompto back.” The snores stopped almost too suddenly. (Y/N) sighed loudly. _Of course those idiots were faking it. Good thing I know that Prompto is the only one who snores._ She thought. The tent was silent, save for the one sharp intake of breath she heard once she jabbed at the tent side again.

 

“Geez, guys. Just come on out, I’m not gonna hurt you, I promise. I just need to know what goin-” She was cut short as the tent flap suddenly opened and she was pulled inside.

 

“Guys, seriously what are yo-”

 

“Shhhh!” A harsh finger was pressed to her lips as she attempted to tell off the boys for their weird behavior. Breaking free from whoever had roughly dragged her into the tent, she took in the mussed up state of the tent. Sleeping bags were flipped over and crumpled up and their clothes scattered about, both things something Ignis would never allow. Raising a curious eyebrow, she turned around to ask them what had happened. Looking at her friends closely, she noticed little pinpricks of red light floating throughout the space, some landing but then going out immediately. Uneasy, she started backing up towards the tent flap. Glancing around, she noticed Noctis was still asleep, oblivious to the whole ordeal.

 

“Guys…?” Slowly, maniacal grins spread across Ignis and Gladiolus’ faces. They were unnatural to the point they were unnerving. (Y/N) knew she needed to get out of here; there was definitely something wrong. Throwing a quick glance in Noctis direction, she made a plan of escape. Whatever was going on, Noctis wasn’t affected by it. As Ignis and Gladiolus advanced slowly towards her corner she tried not to panic, but it was really hard when menacing low chuckles came from her companions. The low light let her notice another thing definitely meant that her friends were not under their own control. Both pairs of eyes that were illuminated a sickly purple.

 

“....Noctis.” She spoke his name so firmly and with such authority that she saw his eyes snap open. He didn’t move though, only flicked his eyes in her direction. His eyes were the normal watery blue, and she let out a sigh of relief. With her eyes still on Noctis, she started trying to talk the other two out of whatever they were in. Prompto was probably also getting more afraid by the second, out there alone.

 

She made a split second decision and hoped Noctis went along with it. (Y/N) mentally apologized to Ignis and Gladio, then swiftly kicked them where the sun don’t shine as a distraction. The two crumbled, groaning and she shouted at Noctis.

 

“Out! Go!” She then bolted out of the tent herself. She could hear Noctis behind her and she ran back up to Prompto, still curled into his little ball. She wasn’t sure if the tracks in the dirt on his face were from crying or sweating, but she was too preoccupied with getting the three of them away from there to think about it too much. She grabbed his arm, squeezing it twice to let him know it was her. One look at his eyes told her that he still couldn’t see, but his eyes were a bit bluer than when she had dragged him here. He followed obediently, stumbling along as fast as he could. Noctis ran up right next to them, grabbing Prompto’s other arm and helping to guide him through the dense forest.

 

By the time they had reached the nearest road, all three were panting and tired. Noctis gently lowered Prompto to the ground, then plopping himself down next to him. There had been a couple of close calls, but they had managed to outrun their possessed friends and make it somewhere safe.

 

“Well. That was….strange.” (Y/N) said once she had breath again. Noctis nodded in agreement.

 

“It was. Do you have any idea what was wrong with them?” Noctis asked. All he knew was that he had laid down to take a nap after Prompto had run off. His head had been killing him ever since they encountered that new enemy and Prompto’s outburst hadn’t helped it at all. The next thing he knew, (Y/N) had awoken him and they ran with a stumbling Prompto in tow.

 

(Y/N) shook her head. “Not a clue…” She was just as confused as he was. This was far from either of those two’s normal behavior, just from seeing them around the palace.

 

_“Triiiis, come on! We’re gonna be late!” A little Lunafreya called through a shuttered window. A muffled voice could be heard inside, as if in conversation. After a moment of waiting, Luna knocked twice on the window and the voices stopped. The window opened revealing a young (Y/N), bright eyed and dressed to the nines. Or rather, as well as a 12 year old can be. Tonight there was to be a ball at the Fleuret palace; today was Lunafreya’s 13th birthday._

 

_She met Luna when they were children. (Y/N) used to always sneak out of her house and wander around Tenebrae, marveling at all of the magnificent forestry and befriending small animals. She met Luna while she was doing the same, and being little girls, they became friends very quickly and constantly met up in the winding paths of the green city. They would always go window shopping at all of the markets in town. Surprisingly, no one recognized Lunafreya on these ventures, but neither girl was going to complain. Soon they spent most days together, running around, getting into trouble and sometimes just sitting and talking._

 

_She remembered seeing Gladiolus in the hall outside of Noctis’ room whenever Luna and her would sneak into the castle to see him. She was pretty sure he knew they were there but he always let them “sneak” by him anyway. He was very nice, but very intimidating to her 12-year-old self. Now, she knew the gentle giant well; he was strong so he could protect his friends and had a strong bond with each of the boys. Though she was still a little bit new to him, Gladiolus still treated her just like one of the other guys (although her hair has suffered from all of the headlocks and hair ruffling he’s given her….)_

 

_Ignis would always come to drag Noctis away for some “princely training” every time they’d do something fun, and more often than not the one who always caught the trio in the midst of some mischief. One time when she hadn’t run away fast enough, she also had to sit through the lecture that Ignis would give the three (usually Noct and Luna took the brunt of it, Luna sending her away before Ignis’ wrath could catch up. Even as a young child he was terrifying when angry._

 

“Oi, are you even listening?!” A rough shove to her shoulder broke her out of her memories. She shook off the memories, quickly coming back to the present. Noctis was sitting next to her on a large rock. Smiling sheepishly, she replied.

 

“Sorry, what was that again?” At this, Noctis sighed. She could tell he wasn’t really exasperated, just tired. A lot had happened in the past days, and coupled with the lack of good sleep, created a very irritated prince.

 

“ _I said_ , don’t you think we should find somewhere populated to be? I don’t think we’re exactly welcome back at camp right now, and I’m starving.” (Y/N) would have laughed at that if she wasn’t so exhausted. She nodded, letting her head rest in her hands in a sudden fit of exhaustion. Their little haven was silent for a few moments, save the chirping of the early morning crickets

 

“G-guys?” A voice gravelly from disuse broke the moment, making two heads snap up to look at the source. They saw Prompto sitting against the tree they had placed him under, eyes wide open and back to their normal sky blue. (Y/N) sighed in relief. For a split second she had thought Not-Ignis and Not-Gladio had found them somehow. She grinned at Prompto and went over to sit next to him.

 

“Well hey there Chocobo-head, nice to have you back!” She said teasingly, causing Prompto to laugh half-heartedly, but genuinely at the same time. He let out a sigh, looking up at the sunset already more than cresting the horizon.

 

“I’m glad to be back.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Such a cheesy ending....//sweats
> 
> Oh well, it fits in I guess ^-^"


	5. Chapter 5

Now that Prompto was able to walk for himself, their journey was made significantly easier. None of them really said anything to each other, except for Prompto asking the other two to slow down every so often. The morning sun was well over the horizon, and the heat of the started to roll over the landscape. They were thankfully able to avoid contact with anything hostile and made it safely to a little town on the side of the road they were all too tired to find the name of.

 

“Are we there yet?” Prompto whined. Noctis resisted the strong urge to face-palm and groaned audibly. Yes, they were in the city now so that was one problem solved. However, another even more pressing one faced them now. Since Ignis was the most responsible out of the group, he was the one who kept the group's funds, and given his current state of….abnormality, it wasn’t in anyone’s mind to try and go back and get some. They were all very hungry, not having eaten since late afternoon the previous day, even more evident by the sudden grumbling of someone’s stomach. She turned to see Noctis turned away blushing slightly at having made such a noise.

 

“See? I’m not the only one who’s hun-”

 

“Shut it, Prompto.” Noctis interrupted Prompto’s teasing with a playful shove to the shoulder.

 

(Y/N) shook her head with a smile, though she was glad that the two were still able to have fun given their current situation. Prompto shoved back and it soon escalated into a mock fight, ending with Noctis trapping Prompto in a headlock. (Y/N) stopped paying attention, trying to figure out how they could get some quick money for a couple of meals. She ran through several ideas in her head, some more plausible than others. _Maybe,_ she thought, _Noctis’ royal status might be able to get him and Prompto something at least…_

 

She shook her head. There’s no way that would work. They were supposed to be keeping a   ”low profile, stay under the radar and do what they needed to do,” as Ignis had said very nearly after the group had made camp for the first time. Even though he may not be in his right mind at the moment, she knew that his advice was valid and that it should still be followed. Worrying her lip between her teeth, (Y/N) soon ran out of ideas and started pacing back and forth in front of the two boys. They had stopped their friendly squabble and were instead watching her intently. They jumped when she suddenly stopped in front of them with a snap of her fingers.

 

“That’s it!” She said triumphantly, a glimmer in her eye as she started walking off. Noctis rolled his eyes and shouted sarcastically after her.

 

“Hey genius, sharing would be nice!” (Y/N) stopped and walked back to them sheepishly.

 

“Sorry, I didn’t realize I hadn’t said anything…” She gave them an apologetic smile before explaining.

 

“I was just thinking that we should go find the tipster in this town and find out if there’s any hunts to be had around here, make some quick money and get something to ea-” Her explanation was once again interrupted by a growling stomach, though this time it was Prompto, who went pink at the sound. Noctis let out an amused puff, almost saying _look who’s embarrassed now._ (Y/N) only laughed softly.

 

“Point proven. So, what do you say? A quick hunt and then a bite to eat? Then we can start figuring out what’s wrong with Ig and Gladio and hopefully find a way to fix them.” she said.

 

“Sounds good to me.” Noctis said coolly. Prompto nodded in agreement.

 

“Off we go then.” She said.

 

It only took them a couple of minutes to find what seemed to be one of two restaurants in the small town. It was a quaint little place, and it was already filled with people talking and laughing with each other. Pulling out her phone and checking  the time, she saw that it was indeed the prime time for the afternoon lunch rush. It looked like an old style diner crowded with bright red, vinyl booth seats and stools at a brightly colored half-bar. It made (Y/N) almost giggle. There was even a jukebox and waitresses in poodle skirts with roller skates.

 

A heavy elbow rested on her shoulder as she took in the homey smell of grilling burgers and fries.

 

“Well, let’s get this over with.” Noctis said, heading up to the man behind the counter. He jumped slightly at Noctis’ sudden presence. He quickly regained his composure, swiping imaginary dust off of his apron.

 

“Well hello there folks. I’m Crow’s Nest Carl, welcome to the Crow’s Nest Diner.” He said with a smile, which all three returned nicely. (Y/N) nudged Noctis from behind him. She’d done enough talking today and was certainly ready to take a break from it. He turned to her for a split second and nodded. He sat at one of the vinyl stools, placing an arm on the table and clearing his throat.

 

“We’re looking for hunts to make some money. Got anything that needs taken care of?” He asked casually. Carl stared at him for a moment, then looked around at his two companions then burst out laughing.  Puzzled looks covered all three of their faces at his outburst. Carl’s loud laughing had also startled a few nearby customers, causing them to turn and look at the trio as well. (Y/N) and Prompto exchanged looks with each other. Prompto shrugged dismissively, and (Y/N) just rolled her eyes. Soon enough, his laughing died down and he leant on the counter and wiped a tear from his eye.

 

“Pardon me sayin’ so but, ya’ll don’t exactly look like hunter material.” He shook his head then continued, “But ya’ll are welcome to try takin’ a couple of varmints down. There’s a pack of them desert dogs that come ‘round here, ransackin’ anything they can get their claws on.”

 

At this point, Noctis was sure that had this been in _any_ other circumstance that this man would not be laughing at him. He was the _prince_ after all, what did this ‘Carl’ guy think he did all day, sit on his butt and twiddle his thumbs? _As if._ His hand unconsciously clenched tight and his teeth gritted. Only when (Y/N) laid a gentle hand on his shoulder did he realize he was so tense and relaxed. He took a deep breath and gave the man a dangerous smile, and he _definitely_ did _not_ find joy in the way Carl flinched away from him.

 

“Consider it done.” He said, then got up abruptly and left. He tried not to slam the door, he really did. (It didn’t work)  (Y/N) and Prompto both flinched at the prince’s  forceful exit. Offering a slight bow as way of apology for her friend’s behavior, (Y/N) dragged Prompto out with her to go find the most likely steaming Noctis.

 

(Y/N) sent Prompto around the other side to look for Noctis. (Y/N) found him not too far from the door, around the side of the building throwing rocks into the field nearby. Sighing, she walked over to him.

 

“Oi, Noct. What was that for?” She called out to him. He whipped around to face her, eyebrows knitted in a bitter, irritated expression. She stopped in her path under the sheer intensity of his angry gaze, breath stuttering to a stop in her throat. Prompto came around the corner and stopped suddenly as well. Noctis was obviously riled up over something, and (Y/N) had a good feeling she knew exactly what it was. When Carl had said that they didn’t look much like hunters to him, that implied that they seemed weak. Seeing as Noctis has trained for pretty much his entire life, he should be pretty strong right?

 

Well, he didn’t think so most of the time.

 

 _He does really well at hiding his emotions, especially now that he’s grown up more._ (Y/N) thought. Memories of a young Noctis thrashing around in his bed during a nightmare immediately pop into her head. It’s not something she likes to remember.

 

_When Luna and (Y/N) both came of age (one year later for (Y/N) because she was a year younger than Luna), Luna formally inducted her as her own lady-in-waiting. Since she now had a reason to hang around Luna all the time, (Y/N) frequently tagged along whenever Noctis and Luna would go somewhere. Luna said it was because she felt safe with both of them protecting her, but (Y/N) knew she just did it for an excuse to have her tag along. Noctis didn’t mind, in fact he thought it was nice to have another friend._

 

_She had gotten the news that Noctis’ caravan was attacked while she was asleep, summoned by King Regis himself to the throne room. His eyes were red, and it was obvious he had been crying and was very distressed. He looked worse for wear, but still cared more about his son than himself. She was sent to watch over him as he slept so that the King could rest and recover. She sat there the whole night and into the morning, watching him. He was pale, even more so than usual. His face was oddly peaceful for sustaining such a grievous injury, but she couldn’t help but fuss over each little movement or noise of discomfort._

 

_She ended up taking care of him until King Regis decided to take him to Tenebrae for healing even though Noctis denied ever having been in pain._

 

Shaking herself from her thoughts once again, she realized Noctis had been standing there glaring at her this entire time. His chest was still heaving, and if she looked closely she could see the minuscule tears in the corners of his eyes.

 

“Noctis I-” She started, but was interrupted by an angry huff of air.

 

“Save it.” He said shortly. (Y/N) frowned, taking a step toward him. Noctis put up a hand to stop her.

 

“I’m fine, just leave me alone.” Noctis grumbled and turned away from them. He saw a parking barrier nearby and sat down on it. (Y/N) almost sighed. With Noctis in a mood like this, there was no way they’d get out to that hunt before dark.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait everyone! ^-^"   
> And yaaay angst! Pretty much my first time writing angst, so hopefully it's okay...Please tell me what you thought about this chapter~!


	6. Author's Note/Disclaimer

Hey guys! 

I hope you all are just as excited as I am that Final Fantasy is finally out!! 

This also means that now since I have the game, updates may become less frequent.... I hope you will all stick with me for this semi-hiatus ^-^"

Now that the game is out, there will also probably be discrepancies between the actual, canon storyline and the story line that I have created in this story. To future readers, please do note that the plot of this story was planned out before the game came out. So please don't get hung up on that. I was going off of what I knew from demos and the other things before the officail game release.

Thanks to everyone who's read the story so far, and to everyone who will read it~! 

Yours Truly,

Rynnli U. R.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The game is so good so far, it just dragged a lil bit of writing out of me...! Sorry it's so short but I promise the next one will be longer.....hopefully ^-^"
> 
> Feedback and ideas welcome but not required~!

Prompto and (Y/N) let Noctis stew for a bit, knowing that trying to get him to talk it out at this point would be futile. They ended up going back to the front of the little diner, sitting on a bench with a roughed up crow in a baseball cap on one end. It’s wing was out in what was supposed to be an inviting pose, but in its deteriorating state it was just plain creepy. Prompto refused to sit next to it, but urged (Y/N) to sit next to it to take a picture.

 

After snapping a quick photo, Prompto plopped down onto the bench beside her. The sun was high in the sky, almost right above them.

 

“High noon.” Prompto said, looking up. “And high time for us to get some food.” As if on cue, his stomach growled loudly. (Y/N) didn’t hear him, too deep in her own thoughts. Nothing seemed to be going their way today. First the weird attack with the Magiteks, then Prompto ran off and was attacked, Ignis and Gladio were acting weird, Noctis was mad and now it had been approximately 10 hours since they had last eaten…

 

“You seem to do that a lot, huh?” Prompto’s voice brought her out of her mind, his face right in front of hers. She jumped back with a little squeak, causing a little laugh to bubble out of Prompto. She peeked out from between her fingers over her face, pushing out her bottom lip in a pout.

 

“So? Doesn’t mean you gotta scare me like that!” She said with mock annoyance. She knew he only meant well, but now that someone said something about it… She did space out a lot. Prompto was still trying to suppress a giggle with a hand over his mouth when Noctis came stomping around the corner. Both of them watched as the prince stalked up to them. Thankfully, he was aware of his anger enough not to shout at them when he spoke.

 

“Well? Let’s go, looks like we’ve got some pests to take care of.” His tone of voice could be described as menacing. (Y/N) felt bad for whatever creatures they had to go off and slay; there was going to be no hesitation or mercy from Noctis today. He didn’t even wait for a response before continuing towards the field nearby, weapon in hand and ready to go. (Y/N) shook her head with a sigh.

 

“Unbelievable.”

 

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~  
  


Ignis and Gladiolus woke up to find themselves face down on the ground and a very specific ache in a not so pleasant place. Ignis was the first to sit up, noticing the disarray of the tent with a small scowl and sighing. He looked to where he had left the Prince snoring away earlier, and to his horror he was gone.

 

A rough laugh from Gladio roused him from his near panic.

 

“Damn, that girl can really kick…” he trailed off with a groan.

 

Ignis would’ve rolled his eyes at the idiotic comment had he not been in super-protector mode. Then it all came rushing back into his head at once; Prompto running off and (Y/N) going after him, convincing (well maybe that wasn’t the right word; more like mentioning it in passing) Noctis to sleep, then the two coming back and (Y/N) shouting something. It was all blurry from there, except for one moment of extreme pain….

 

Shoving his face in his hands, Ignis thought hard. _Who knows where those three could be? What if they were in trouble, or worse dead already? How long had they been out for? Wh-_

 

“Iggy, calm down. I can hear the gears in your head from here.” Gladiolus said, roughly jostling his friend’s shoulder. Somehow that kicked Ignis into activity, causing him to stand and rush out of the tent. He almost sighed in relief as he looked at the sun then his watch; high in the sky and almost right above them. Not even a whole day had passed; it had only been a few hours. Gladio was stumbling out a few second after him, following Ignis’ line of sight up to the burning sun.

 

“It’s high noon. And high time we got some grub, don’t you agree?” Ignis sighed again for the third time in probably in as many minutes.

 

“Of course the only thing on your mind is food. Not where the others are, or the possible danger; but food.” He paused to adjust his jacket and pick up a couple of supplies.

 

“Unbelievable.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Brownie points to those who caught the reference in this chapter haha


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay ^-^" I finished the game a little bit ago so updates should hopefully come more frequently now. I've got pleeenty of ideas for the plot now hehehe >:3

It didn’t take long for Noctis, (Y/N) and Prompto to find the subject of their hunt. It didn’t seem too difficult a pack; only ten or so of the dog looking creatures. Noctis had summoned a weapon and was charging into battle before (Y/N) could even breathe a word about strategy and stealth. Noctis’ eagerness pulled a quiet chuckle out of Prompto, and he turned to (Y/N).

 

“Well, shall we join him before he ‘Noct’s’ em all out?” He said, trying not to laugh at his own pun. (Y/N) rolled her eyes, then summoned her own weapon.

 

“Let’s get going then!” She said and starting sprinting off in the direction of the prince. Prompto followed shortly after.

 

Immediately coming into the middle of the aggressive herd, she intercepted one Sabertusk that was about to blindside Noctis and knocked it off to the side with a swift sweep of her sword.

 

“Watch yourself Noct!” She yelled, dodging a bite aimed at her ribs. Her blade found a temporary home in the back leg of one Sabertusk. She heard a bullet whizz by her and finish it off. She smiled, quickly getting into a groove as Noctis finished off a third and fourth one.

 

Soon there were only five left, and they were dead set on trying to take her group out. Constant running passes all around them made it hard to land a hit with a sword or gun, something they found out very quickly when all three got frustrated with their repeated misses. Prompto had gotten nicked a few times on the leg which gave him a little bit of a limp, and Noctis was too frustrated and wound up to care about his minor injuries. It was evident in the way his chest heaved and fists clenched as his eyes followed the dashing enemies.

 

One second he was there, and suddenly he wasn’t. The blue signature left behind was the only evidence he had been there at all. (Y/N) scanned the area quickly trying to find where he had gone. She felt a hand on her arm pulling her out of the way of a charging dog, and the sound of several bullets missing their targets.

 

“Seriously?!” It seemed as if Prompto was also feeling the same frustration as Noctis. When Prompto’s eyes flicked behind her and aimed his gun over her shoulder, she didn’t even flinch. A loud whine and a muffled thump let her know that there were now only three Sabertusks left. The bad news was that all four were currently surrounding them, and Noctis was nowhere to be found. Their snarls were frighteningly close, and Prompto shook a little bit next to her. They were almost close enough to bite them, despite their slow prowl towards them. (Y/N)’ mind raced trying to find a way to diffuse and get out of this situation when it was interrupted by a loud shout.

 

**“HEADS UP!”**

 

(Y/N) snapped her attention to the source of the noise, spotting Noctis in the middle of the air with a glowing orb in his hand. Prompto’s body was in front of hers and they were rolling out of the way before she could even make herself move. A blistering cold broke out around them, chilling the two down to the core almost immediately. Prompto’s arms wrapped around her tighter as the wind howled around them. He said something but she couldn’t hear it at all. She could feel her feet and arms starting to go numb and she screwed her eyes shut.

 

Then just as quickly as it had come it was gone. She cracked one eye open, but was met with only darkness and a crushing pressure on her chest. Pushing gently, she rolled a shivering Prompto off of her and sat up. Noctis was jogging over to where they were on the ground, a slightly guilty expression on his face. He held a hand out to (Y/N) to help her up and she graciously took it.

 

“A little more warning would have been nice, ya know?” (Y/N) teased.

 

Prompto stood up and nodded as well, rubbing his arms to warm himself back up. Noctis looked away sheepishly, scratching the back of his neck. (Y/N) playfully shoved his shoulder at his reaction.

 

“Just joking Noct, you saved us back there. Quick thinking!” She said with a smile.   
  


“Y-y-y-y-yeah! T-t-t-t-t-hanks N-n-noct!” It was almost pitiful how much Prompto was shaking. His lips were blue but still smiling, as well as the tips of his fingers as he brought them up to his mouth to breathe some warmer air into them. (Y/N) was quickly coming back up to a normal temperature, and soon went over due to the desert heat.  Glancing up, she saw that the sun hadn’t moved much in the sky. She sighed, at least it hadn’t been too long. She went to speak when a warm sensation on her hands stopped her momentarily. She looked down to her hands and saw that Noctis had wrapped his own around hers in an attempt to warm them up.

 

“Noct, it’s fine you don’t hav-”

 

“It’s my fault isn’t it? Just let me help, it’s...the least I can do.” Noctis cut her off tersely and continued rubbing his hands on hers. She could see the flashes of remorse in his eyes when his grip tightened around her hands. Slipping one out from under his, she placed it on his shoulder.

 

“Stop feeling bad about it, alright? You made a good decision, and look, the effects are almost gone now.” She gave him a reassuring smile. “We’re fine, all thanks to you Noct.”

 

Prompto clapped a hand on Noctis’ unoccupied shoulder, nodding enthusiastically.

 

“She’s right, that was pretty awesome! I wish I could’ve gotten a picture of it though, you looked freakin’ awesome! You were like _uwoooohhhh_ and then you attacked like _fshHHHH_ and the snow was like _WOOOOOOOSH_  and then-” Prompto went on and on, throwing his hands in the air and doing a poor imitation of Noctis’ pose when he jumped. A quiet laugh came from Noctis, and he didn’t feel so guilty anymore.

 

“No way, I definitely looked cooler than that. You’re doing it all wrong!” He shook his head, starting to correct his poses to be ‘cooler’ than the dorky ones he was currently pulling. (Y/N) watched them with an amused expression, but soon enough reined them in when she remembered they had a hunt to turn in. Reaching down to the nearest corpse, she yanked the tusk off of one and inspected it.

 

“Well I don’t know about you boys, but I’m starved. Let’s head back and show that ‘Carl’ that we can get  by just fine, whaddya say?” She called out, giving Noctis a knowing glance. A spark of determination flitted through Noctis and he grinned.

 

“Let’s hit it then. We’ve got a bit of a walk ahead of us.” He said. He set off at a light jog in the direction they came from. (Y/N) followed, quickly catching up to him. Prompto followed, but complained anyway.

 

“Do we haaaave to walk?” He whined. Noctis turned with a laugh to look over his shoulder at his trailing friend.

 

“If you wanna eat today, yeah, I’d say so.”


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry the updates have been so slow, I've become proofreader for someone else's story and they write looooong chapters hehe. Please continue to stick with me!!

Carl seemed quite surprised to see the trio back so quickly, if the wide eyed look and the way he jumped at their entrance were any indication. Granted, Noctis did kind of slam the door open. He strode up confidently to the counter, and offered a smug smile.

“Pests taken care of.” He said, sliding the tusk across the counter. Carl’s eyes flitted from the severed tusk to the group and back again. He seemed unable to make a comment, snarky or not. He just nodded and handed over the reward for the the hunt quietly, seemingly in awe of the trio. (Y/N) took responsibility for the gil handed to them, and they all sat down to have some food. They all deserved a good meal after all that had happened and no one hesitated to get the biggest meal possible. Prompto cheered loudly at the promise of food and sat down on one of the nearby stools. Carl nodded again and disappeared into the back room. 

Noctis still looked way too pleased with himself, but (Y/N) didn’t blame him. Serves him right for underestimating the Crown Prince. She thought smugly. Prompto was already babbling away, something about King’s Knight probably. Noctis was paying little attention, giving a nod or letting out a little mhm as he watched Carl prepare the food. Eventually Prompto noticed what he was paying attention to and joined his friend in watching their food. (Y/N) sat deep in thought. She was still trying to figure out what had happened to Ignis and Gladio back at camp. No doubt that whatever they were under had a cure, the question was just what was it...

Soon enough, Carl returned with three big plates of food and set one in front of each person. Prompto cheered, and Noctis’ eyes sparkled. They picked up their spoons as soon as it had been set in front of them, each not waiting another second to dig into his helping of Chili Con Carne. (Y/N) thanked him with a small nod and he turned to leave them but hesitated. He cleared his throat and turned back around.

“I, uh. Wanna apologize for earlier. For thinkin’ y’all couldn’t handle the hunt. Thank ya kindly for takin’ those Sabers out.” He gave a small, awkward bow to the three, then returned to his place behind the counter. 

“Well that was unexpected.” Prompto said, slightly muffled from around a bite of chili.

“Glad he finally got the guts to apologize,” Noctis said, his mouth also full. (Y/N) rolled her eyes, suppressing a laugh.

“Honestly you two, how many times do I have to tell you not to talk with your mouth full. Jeez, you’d think you two were brought up by animals or something.” She teased, pointing her spoon at them. Prompto swallowed loudly.

“Hey, it’s not my fault this is the first food I’ve eaten today. A man’s gotta eat, right Noct?” He nudged his friend with his elbow and Noctis froze, looking up at him with the spoon halfway in his mouth.

“Wha now?” He asked, very confused. He had been so focused on eating that he had totally missed whatever just happened. He knew better than to agree blindly to things Prompto said. Last time he did, he’d ended up having to bait a Cabletopas close to the shore so Prompto could get an ‘up close picture’. 

Prompto and (Y/N) exchanged glances, then burst into laughter. Noctis couldn’t help but crack small smile, shaking his head as he continued to dig in. 

By the time they were halfway through their bowls, they were reaching the point where they couldn’t eat anymore. (Y/N) let out a content sigh. 

“Nothing like a good meal to make your day, huh boys?” She said, patting her stomach lightly. Both nodded in agreement. Prompto was still trying to fit a couple more bites in when something outside the diner caught her eye. It was still light outside, and it was easy to see exactly who was wandering around the gas station.

“Noctis. Prompto.” Both sets of eyes snapped to look at her at her firm voice. She took a deep breath, and tucked her head down lower to avoid being seen through the large window to their left. 

“Neither of you look now, but Ignis and Gladio are outside,” Noctis’ eyes darkened immediately, also ducking his head down. 

“I don’t know if they’re still...not themselves. They’re most likely looking for us.”Prompto looked between them, confused. 

 

“Wait wait wait, what’s going on? Isn’t it a good thing they’re looking for us….?” Then it struck (Y/N) that they had never explained. She and Noctis shared a guilty look.

Oops.

“I don’t think right now is the best time to explain, but if we get out of this then I can explain the whole thing. Basically, Ig and Gladio aren’t exactly...themselves…” She said quietly, glancing out the window every couple of words. The two had gone into the small shop in the nearby gas station, and she saw it as their time to escape. She pulled some gil from her pocket and placed it on the table.

“Time to go boys. They’re distracted, now’s our chance.” She stood up and made her way to the door quickly. Noctis and Prompto were a couple steps behind, having shoved a couple more mouthfuls of their food into their mouths before following her. (Y/N) kept a steady eye on the door of the shop. Unless Ignis had stopped to replenish their supply of curatives, they would be out at any second. A short glance at her phone said it was nearly six o’clock. She sighed, exasperated. Why couldn’t this just be a nice trip for once? She thought, going down the stairs. Prompto and Noctis were right behind her, tense. She jerked her head towards the back of the restaurant and started briskly walking that direction, the trio’s steps echoing off of the diner’s exterior.

They had almost made it around the back when a familiar voice called out.

“Hey, Specs! I found ‘em.” 

The three whipped around, eyes wide. (Y/N) cursed Gladio’s vigilance and grabbed the two boy’s arms. 

“Go!” She yelled and pushed them ahead of her. Better she get caught than them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, thanks for reading!
> 
> Please tell me what you think about the story, well, really any comments are appreciated! Also, plot ideas or theories are always welcome too :3


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